Conico Ltd (ASX: CNJ) holds a 50:50 joint venture with Greenstone Resources over the Mt Thirsty cobalt-nickel-manganese-scandium project near Norseman, Western Australia -- described by the company as Australia's most advanced cobalt project. A Pre-Feasibility Study (Amec Foster Wheeler Australia) was completed in 2020 on an earlier, smaller, higher-grade resource definition (26.9 Mt @ 0.126% Co/0.54% Ni). Since then, the resource has grown substantially: a 2023 update (WSP Australia) reported a global JORC Mineral Resource of 66.2 Mt @ 0.06% Co/0.43% Ni/0.45% Mn (a 146%/39.3 Mt increase), split as Mt Thirsty Main (30.2 Mt Indicated + 31.9 Mt Inferred) and Mt Thirsty North (4.2 Mt Inferred only, 0.0 Mt Indicated). Conico's 2026 annual report says a Scoping Study on the enlarged resource was completed by the joint-venture partners in the third quarter of 2023; the 2020 Pre-Feasibility Study remains the project's most advanced completed study, and planned drilling aims to bring scandium into the resource. Conico also holds 100% of the Ryberg (~4,521 sq km) and Mestersvig exploration licences in Greenland, targeting Cu-Pd-Au-Ni-Co-Pt.
Notable vs. Peers
- Trading within 2% of its 52-week low — weak recent price momentum.
Lifecycle Milestones
Not yet determined: mill, tailings facility, grid power.
Jurisdiction (40%)9/10
Western Australia: Fraser PPI 2025 is 88.53 of 100 (rank 13 of 68), which maps to 9 on this site's scale. Conico's Greenland ground (Ryberg, Mestersvig) is real but earlier-stage and does not change the flagship jurisdiction.
Infrastructure (40%)6.4/10
Confirmed road access at Mt Thirsty Cobalt-Nickel-Manganese Project (joint venture), near Norseman, Western Australia, Australia; existing mill, grid power, and tailings facility not yet researched, counted at a neutral 5/10 until established.
Nearby producing mine (20%)10/10
Norseman (Phoenix plant / OK pit) (Pantoro Gold Limited) is 17 km away -- within shared-mill trucking range.
Acquisition Susceptibility
A relative ranking of how closely this company matches the profile of juniors that have actually been acquired — not a probability, and not a reason to buy. Acquisitions are rare: only a few dozen significant deals happen a year across a universe of thousands of juniors, so even a high score here describes a long shot. The strongest signal in the research, a producer that already owns part of the company, is scored from its disclosed strategic shareholders. A producer that is a joint-venture or earn-in partner on the project, rather than a shareholder, isn't captured yet.
How this score is built
- Disclosed pending dealSub-score: Not scored
No pending acquisition or merger disclosed (checked)
Not scored: having no deal in flight isn't held against a company.
Weight 26.25% - Producer's strategic stakeSub-score: Not scored
No producer holds a disclosed stake on file (holder register researched) See holders
Not scored: most juniors that do get bought had no prior toehold, so a missing stake says little either way.
Weight 25% - Distance to a producing mineSub-score:8.3/10
Nearest producing mine: Norseman (Phoenix plant / OK pit) (Pantoro Gold Limited), 17 km
10 next to a producing mine, 8 at 20 km, 5 at 50 km, 0 beyond 200 km.
Weight 22.5% · 46% here - Lifecycle stageSub-score:8/10
Stage: Pre-Feasibility Study
Feasibility and permitting score 10, where deals cluster, and production 5.5; earlier stages score less, down to 1 at grassroots.
Weight 15% · 31% here - JurisdictionSub-score:9/10
Australia: jurisdiction score 9/10
Our jurisdiction score, used as is: higher means lower political and permitting risk.
Weight 6.75% · 14% here - CommoditySub-score:4/10
Primary commodity: Nickel
Gold 10, copper 8, silver 5, nickel and uranium 4, others 2: most majors' deals are for gold.
Weight 4.5% · 9% here
Weight is each input's share of the full score. “Here” is its share of this company's score: inputs that aren't scored are left out and the rest re-weighted, never counted as zero.
Your Rankings
Management Team
Chairman of Conico Ltd (ASX: CNJ). LLB. Has practised as a commercial and corporate lawyer in Western Australia for over 25 years with experience in mining, technology, corporate, commercial, finance and property law, advising companies on projects and joint ventures globally with extensive international commercial negotiation experience. Has been involved in the mining and exploration industry as both legal adviser and director on projects in Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines, was involved in establishing and floating two mining/exploration companies, and has held several public company directorships over more than 15 years, including as a director of Tasman Resources NL since 1987. A different person from Conico's Non-Executive Director Doug Solomon. Source: conico.com.au people page.
Executive Director of Conico Ltd (ASX: CNJ), having joined the board in March 2006. B.A., B.Sc., B.App.Sc. (Hons), GradDip App Fin, GradDipFinPlan, FFIN, MAusIMM. Currently Director and Corporate Adviser of RM Corporate Finance, involved in mergers, acquisitions, initial public offerings, valuations and corporate advisory. Was Head of Research at Morgan Stockbroking Limited supervising industrial and resources research, and joined Tolhurst Noall as Corporate Advisor in 1998; as a resources analyst published research on mineral exploration companies. Spent 10 years as an exploration and mining geologist in Australia, Canada and the United States with experience in gold and base metal exploration, and has produced technical and valuation reports for resource companies. Source: conico.com.au people page.
Non-Executive Director of Conico Ltd (ASX: CNJ). LLB (Hons), B Juris. Extensive legal experience including real property, property development, strata titles, conveyancing, finance, securities, leasing, planning, environmental, corporations, commercial and construction law, litigation and dispute resolution, covering major commercial and litigious matters for international, national, governmental and local clients. Has acted as a director of numerous public companies and appeared as counsel in all Western Australian and federal courts including the High Court. A different person from Conico's Chairman Greg Solomon. Source: conico.com.au people page.
Non-Executive Director of Conico Ltd (ASX: CNJ). A geologist and finance executive with more than 35 years of resources industry experience across technical, business development and corporate roles. Spent 10 years in exploration and mine development with companies including Normandy NFM, RGC, Goldfields and Aurora Gold, then moved to finance at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in project finance, followed by more than six years with Toro Energy as General Manager of Business Development. Was Managing Director of Southern Gold Ltd (ASX: SAU) for seven years and of Asiatic Gold Ltd, and is currently non-executive Chairman of Orpheus Uranium Ltd and a consultant to NexGen Energy Ltd. Source: conico.com.au people page.
Insiders, Investors & Smart Money
Notable shareholders and insiders whose involvement is worth knowing about, plus what we're seeing from institutional/large-investor activity.
No smart-money tracking (institutional/large-investor activity) for this miner yet — this is a planned feature, not live data.
No notable insiders tracked for this miner yet.
Reports, Presentations & Documents
Conico holds a 50% interest in the Mt Thirsty cobalt-nickel-manganese-scandium project near Norseman, Western Australia, in a joint venture with Greenstone Resources; the company describes it as Australia's most advanced cobalt project. A 2023 resource update by WSP Australia, announced on 26 April 2023, put the global resource at 66.2 Mt at 0.06% cobalt, 0.43% nickel and 0.45% manganese, including 154,000 t of nickel indicated, all at Mt Thirsty Main in 30.2 Mt at 0.51% nickel, and 129,800 t of nickel inferred, on a 100% basis. The project's most advanced completed study is a 2020 pre-feasibility study on an earlier, smaller and higher-grade resource of 26.9 Mt at 0.126% cobalt and 0.54% nickel; the joint-venture partners completed a scoping study on the enlarged resource in the third quarter of 2023 but did not release it, so no current economics are public. Planned drilling aims to bring scandium into the resource. Conico also holds 100% of the Ryberg and Mestersvig exploration licences in Greenland, targeting copper, palladium, gold, nickel, cobalt and platinum.